It occurs in uninterrupted expanses of lowland tropical forest (typically below 900 m but locally to 2,000 m), but will nest where high-grade forestry has been practised, and use forest patches within a pasture/forest mosaic for hunting (Bierregaard 1994a, Parker et al. 1996). Nests have been reported only 3 km apart in Panama and Guyana (Bierregaard 1994a).

Although still reasonably common in the Amazonian forests of Brazil and Peru (H. Lloyd in litt. 1999), it will only survive in the long term if the escalating rate of forest destruction in the region is brought under control and a network of inviolate reserves established (Malingreau and Tucker 1988, Bierregaard 1994a). Low overall population densities and slow reproductive rates make shooting the most significant threat over its entire range (Bierregaard 1994a, Bierregaard et al. 1995). It could perhaps survive in disturbed forests or even forest mosaics if its large size and boldness in the face of humans did not make it an irresistible target for hunters (Bierregaard 1994a, Bierregaard et al. 1995). It presumably also suffers from competition with humans for prey (Galetti et al. 1997b).

Conservation Actions UnderwayCITES Appendix I and II. Reintroductions have taken place in Belize and Panama(Matola 2004, Muela and Curti 2005).

Conservation Actions ProposedWork with local communities to reduce hunting. Stengthen network of protected areas to include core remaining areas of habitat, and establish a captive breeding population to support future reintroduction and supplementation efforts. Clarify its precise ecological requirements and its ability to persist in fragmented and altered habitats.

Citation:

BirdLife International 2013. Harpia harpyja. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2015.2. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 03 August 2015.